The World Health Organisation, (WHO), Geneva, has included three more anti retroviral (ARV) products from Ranbaxy Laboratories in its pre-qualification list taking the total to 15 ARVs.

The ARV''s approved by the WHO recently are:
Lamivudine 150mg/Zidovudine 300mg tablet + Efavirenz 600mg tablet compliance pack
Lamivudine 150mg/Stavudine 30mg tablet + Efavirenz 600mg tablet compliance pack
Lamivudine 150mg/Stavudine 40mg tablet + Efavirenz 600mg tablet compliance pack

With these inclusions, Ranbaxy now has a total of 15 ARVs on the WHO pre-qualification list consisting of single dose and fixed dose combination products.

"We are committed to using our experience and technology in developing innovative products to make value added generic ARVs that improve compliance and reduce costs. Malvinder Mohan Singh, CEO&MD, Ranbaxy said. "Recent years have seen major reduction in cost of ARVs and Ranbaxy has been on the forefront in providing affordable ARVs to patients across nations. We now need to look for other benefits for patients and develop smarter products. We are delighted with these new approvals and believe this will benefit patients immensely," Singh added.

These ARVs are made available in compliance kit packs, designed to enhance patient compliance for medication and are Ranbaxy''s latest additions to the WHO list. These packs contain two fixed dose combination tablets of Lamivudine / Zidovudine or lamivudine / Stavudine with a single tablet of Efavirenz.

Among these, Lamivudine / Stavudine + Efavirenz formulations are the first by any company on the WHO list.

Worldwide, several patients use Lamivudine, Efavirenz and Stavudine / Zidovudine, all together. Presenting these ARV''s in kits will enable the doctors ensure patients comply with the treatment. The Kit packs will also make it simple for procurement managers to place orders and help to reduce cost of procurement and shipment.

Ranbaxy''s ARVs, including the recently approved WHO pre-qualified products, are manufactured at the Company''s state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in India, inspected and approved by some of the most stringent agencies in the world. The Company has already filed a range of ARVs for US FDA approvals and has begun to receive tentative approvals from the USFDA under the PEPFAR program. The Company''s ARVs are sold in over 50 countries worldwide.